The United Nations nuclear watchdog urged Iran on Friday to take incremental steps allowing inspectors to return to major nuclear facilities. The International Atomic Energy Agency stated that such access was vital.
International inspectors have been barred from key nuclear sites in the Islamic republic since a 12-day conflict in June 2025. That military campaign, involving strikes on nuclear locations, was launched by Israel alongside the United States.
Nuclear facilities were struck again in the latest war, which broke out on February 28. The IAEA has repeatedly requested entry since those attacks.
The agency outlined its position in a report prepared for an IAEA board of governors meeting scheduled for next week. The report stated that it was vital for the organisation to conduct verification activities in Iran without delay.
According to the report, the director general encouraged Iran to consider technical and gradual measures to achieve conditions allowing inspectors back into the country. Such incremental steps could pave the way for normal safeguards implementation while building confidence for a wider agreement.
The document outlined correspondence exchanged between the IAEA and Iran over recent weeks. Inspectors managed to visit the Bushehr nuclear plant in September, but other facilities remained completely off limits.
The agency acknowledged that the military attacks on nuclear sites created a new situation. However, the report warned that due to a lack of cooperation, the agency cannot conclude that there has been no diversion of declared nuclear material from peaceful activities.
The lack of information and site access raises serious proliferation concerns. The IAEA stated that the situation needs to be rectified with the utmost urgency.
The IAEA board referred Iran to the UN Security Council in September over nuclear non-compliance. That marked the first time in two decades that Iran faced referral to the top UN body for failing to meet nuclear reporting obligations.
Prior to the June 2025 strikes, the IAEA estimated that Iran held approximately 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent. That level approaches the 90 percent threshold required for weapons and far exceeds the 3.67 percent limit established by the defunct 2015 agreement.
The fate of that enriched stockpile is uncertain following the military actions. Iran has consistently denied seeking to build a nuclear weapon.
